Open a corporate bank account for your WFOE in China – even with a difficult passport.
The company exists on paper from registration day, but nothing moves until the basic account opens – no supplier or salary paid, no tax settled. The bank decides on the person and the trade; the legal representative goes to the branch in person. We pre-screen your profile with banks and build the file before that trip.
What we open
Which accounts your Chinese company needs, and what each one is for
Chinese banking is built around two functions – pay in the domestic currency, and move money across the border. A regulator (SAFE) monitors the second one.
RMB (yuan) Basic account
Domestic CNY transfers only. Pays Chinese staff, settles with Chinese suppliers, collects from domestic customers, settles tax and rent. Required to operate a WFOE on the ground – every WFOE must hold one as its core domestic account.
Foreign-currency account
USD, EUR, and a few other currencies. Cross-border flows in and out of China, routed under SAFE registration. Every inbound and outbound transfer is matched against a documented purpose. Required if your WFOE receives revenue from abroad, pays a foreign parent, or converts between RMB and foreign currency.
How Chinese business bank accounts work
Why some passports trigger weeks of “we need to confirm with headquarters”, why big banks are stricter but more stable – plus the reason outgoing transfers are harder than incoming.
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Which passport tier are you?
How Chinese banks read your passport
Your passport is the biggest factor – though not the only one – in which China accounts open, and which restrictions they come with. These five tiers match how the banks read you, not how you see yourself. They are built from public sanctions and FATF listings plus what we see banks do at onboarding. Branch discretion changes outcomes case-by-case – pre-screening matters. Where a passport can be obtained by investment or naturalisation, the tier is indicative: banks will read the place of birth. Find your country below to see which account types are realistic.
Standard KYC checks, no concerns. Many Chinese banks work with these profiles without additional scrutiny. 3–10 business days from face scan. Rejection is rare; when it happens it’s about business model and payment geography, not the passport risk.
Source-of-funds checks (where your money comes from) and extended KYC required. No structural barriers – major Chinese banks open with EDD, although an introducer helps.
Most top Chinese banks reject onboarding. The realistic route is regional banks, and application through an introducer. Outcome is case-by-case, enhanced due diligence required.
Almost all the Chinese banks reject these profiles. The only route is application through an introducer to a small number of specific regional banks.
Comprehensive OFAC or UN sanctions programs. No US-correspondent bank will process the chain, so no account opens in China.
How we work
Opening the account starts before the company is registered
Step 0 happens before the WFOE is registered – we tell you on the scope call whether the path is realistic for your profile. Steps 1–4 run after the WFOE is in place.
Scope call
We look at your passport and your business together – what you sell, and where the money flows – and check this against the banks we work with. If none would take the profile, we tell you before you pay for a company.
Pre-application introduction
After your Chinese company is opened, we introduce your profile to the bank and get a preliminary read. If a bank won’t take you – we move to the next option before your visit.
Legal rep visit to bank
The legal representative – the person named on the business licence – appears at the branch in person. Face scan against passport, paper signatures on the account papers.
Bank review
While the file is reviewed at the branch, the bank also visits your registered address to check the office is real – with a virtual office, the office provider must be present for that visit. The basic account clears first; the foreign-currency side follows it.
Account live
RMB Basic + FX account activated. Online banking credentials issued, typically tied to one or more physical USB tokens whose drivers need Windows on most banks.
Common questions
What founders ask before they book
Can I open a corporate bank account in a Chinese bank without a WFOE?
You can – a foreign company, a Hong Kong one for example, opens a non-resident account at a mainland bank. Most banks offer the NRA (non-resident account), which mostly serves RMB, the Chinese currency; the free-trade-zone account (FTN, at banks inside China’s free-trade zones) converts between currencies much more freely. Both are opened in person. We cover this route from the Hong Kong side separately.
Do I need to visit China in person? What if I can’t travel?
Yes – the legal representative must appear at the branch: face scan, signatures. Every Chinese bank requires this, with very rare exceptions. The rule binds the legal representative, not the shareholder – the role can be held by a person you appoint. Changing it later is a registry filing, so decide before registration.
How long does it take to open an account in China for a WFOE?
Typically 2–4 weeks from document submission, once the company is registered, to active RMB Basic + FX accounts.
How does money move in and out of China for a WFOE?
Every cross-border transfer is matched against a documented purpose, and SAFE (the cross-border regulator) tracks both directions.
Inbound (foreign → China): lands in the FX account. Each transfer matches an invoice, contract, or capital injection. Standard inbound from stable counterparty countries clears within days.
Outbound for goods (China → foreign): heavier evidence load and SAFE filing. Service payments to foreign providers are rarely cleared for small WFOEs – most Chinese companies route their international contractors through a Hong Kong entity instead.
What happens if a bank declines my application?
Our formula for mainland banks: if after pre-screening we promise you an account, it will be opened. Where pre-screening says no, we go to the next bank – without a wasted application. Credit or trade financing is another matter – for foreign-owned companies with difficult-passport owners it is close to impossible: the account yes, credit no.
My passport is Tier 3 or Tier 4. Is there a realistic path for my WFOE?
Yes, via regional banks with USG-introduced pre-screen. Some regional Chinese banks accept these profiles when the file is presented through a bank manager we work with. Sometimes top-tier Chinese banks accept too – but with domestic-only restrictions (your WFOE will only be able to send and receive domestic payments). Outcome is case-by-case.
One thing we refuse regardless of tier: a Chinese company used as a money pipe – trade that exists only on paper. China does not allow transit trade, and we do not open accounts for it.
Book a free call
Take the thirty minutes first – the call answers whether an account will realistically open for your passport and your trade.
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